Power

At first I wasn’t really sure what to make of this card. It’s the number eight in the major arcana and is illustrated in the guidebook as such:

“As a spiritual being, you have unlimited power at your command. This card represents inner strength, willpower, courage, compassion, generosity, and love. At any moment these beautiful qualities can assist you in coping in adverse condition in front of you or the many surrounding your life. Set aside the necessary time to resolve such issues. Power represents more than physical external strength; it can also be channeled emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. When you have balance over body, mind and soul-and with the power of spirit-nothing can be overcome to achieve a positive result. Power and strength can be developed to work in harmony in any given situation. Every obstacle, every error helps build your knowledge around you. When you make a mistake,it’s a chance for you to stop, listen, and ask yourself: What am I supposed to be earning here, and how can I make this situation better? Mistakes are great wake-up calls., in that they provide you with opportunities to discover your weakenesses, what needs to be changed and which areas of your ice need improving. equally, they can be blessings in disguise. Just remember: you are power!”

Let’s say that gave me a little clarity. .. (well a lot). I often find myself trying to be perfect. I don’t often allow myself room to make mistakes, and when I do make them, it completely shatters me. This ties in inherently with the power  that I associate with being smart. I have always viewed positions of power to be the most intelligent, the most successful, and more importantly the most happy. It’s taken me some time to realize that these institutional programings may not be the right paradigm for me to situate myself in. Yes, I am great at overcoming adversity. Yes, I can put in the hard work and achieve my “dreams”. Yes, I know that I will excel because of my work ethic and drive etc. But in the middle of all of those yeses, I didn’t allow myself time to be my true self. I’ve been operating under this robotic and isolationist framework for too long. Don’t get me wrong I don’t think the isolationist portion will change much (I like to be lazy too much). But this sense of rapid production, meeting deadlines in advance, and the monontious schedule of my life has really started to take a toll not only on my physical but mental health. This card reminds me that I need to set aside the necessary time to take care of myself both physically, mentally, and emotionally, as well as making space for mistakes. The mistakes that I will make will inform my future decisions. There is no one prescribed schedule for life, no time clock that everyone must follow (thanks society).  With this card, I will treat each day like a new day and if it doesn’t fit into the bigger picture neatly in a perfect box with a bow, that’s okay. Sometimes you’ve got to try things out to decide if you like them. And for me, it is recognizing that I havethe power to change my mind while following my instincts.